Q&A with Paul Lonardo

Q&A with Detective Ray Pingatore
Book Synopsis

Q:
How long have you been writing? And has it always been in the true crime genre?
A:
No. Actually, I’ve been writing fiction in various forms for twenty years now. Short stories. Novels. I even tried my hand at screenwriting. The subject matter varied, with influences from the horror genre popular in the 1980’s and science fiction of the 1990’s. It started out as a hobby, then I started thinking that maybe I could get something published. And eventually I had some short stories placed. I had my first novel published in 2000. In a way, that sort of stoked the creative fire in me, but after writing several more novels “on spec,” as they say, and having no further luck getting published, I became somewhat discouraged. It seemed to become increasingly difficult to place any kind of fiction in the market at that time. As an author without an established readership, it's that much more difficult to get your work in print. So when an opportunity came my way to work on a non-fiction project, I took it, and perhaps turned the corner in my writing career. The project was a biography about retired Providence Police Chief, Urbano Prignano, Jr. He was head of department when Mayor Vincent “Buddy” Cianci was under investigation by the FBI for public corruption. Cianci was eventually sentenced to prison after a federal corruption trial.
Q:
How did you get involved with your co-author, Detective Ray Pingitore, in this project, which led to the book, Thrill Killers?
A:
During the research and writing of Embattled, I considered writing about the double homicide of Amy Shute and Jason Burgeson, because they had been abducted in Providence. I didn’t think it was right for a biography, but I knew it could be a book all its own. Then I happened to meet Johnston Detective, Ray Pingitore, who I found out investigated the double homicide and was very passionate about the case. He had been involved throughout the entire process, from the arrest to the prosecution and ultimate sentencing of all five men responsible for the murders. I asked if he would be interested in collaborating on a book, telling the story of Amy and Jason. And here we are.
Q:
Why did you want to write this book? What would you like readers to come away with after reading it?
A:
When this happened, it affected a lot of people in a profound way. I lived a few miles from where it all took place. In that sense, it was personal because it happened in my own backyard. The entire state felt the same emotional responses. There was sorrow for the victims, empathy for the families, anger at the killers, and fear because there was no reason for it, and it could have happened to anyone. With all the media coverage, protracted over four years of trials, Amy and Jason seemed to become lost as the wheels of justice churned. Ray and I wanted not only to tell this story in a condensed book format, but to rediscover Amy and Jason, and make the story about them. We wanted to show how they affected people, family and friends, when they were alive, and not be remembered simply for being the victims of a heinous murder.
Q:
 You experienced the case first-hand as a Rhode Islander, watching the tragedy as it unfolded in various media accounts. Was there anything that surprised you about the case when you began to write about it and look more closely at it?
A:
 Yes. It was remarkable, in fact, how it all came together so smoothly for the investigators, solving the case virtually overnight. Realizing how hard everyone worked, I saw that this was how they made their own - what appeared to be - good fortune. But there were several twists and ironies to this case that I had not been aware of before, which gives the story added dimension. For example, so many occurences happened that night of the murders, that if just one minor detail had been altered, the whole tragedy would surely have been averted. There were some very prominent occurrences, as well, which played a role in the tragic events that followed. It’s errie, and makes it all the more tragic.
Q
 How is writing non-fiction different from fiction writing?
A
 The major difference, I would say, is in the responsibility. Not only do I have to tell the story in such a way that is interesting enough to make people want to read the book from cover to cover, but with a book like this, a true crime story, accountability for the truth is something that must always be considered. The facts cannot be changed, so the writer has to rely on other creative devices to keep the story moving forward and to maintain the interest of the reader. Truth may be stranger than fiction, but the non-fiction author takes on this added responsibility, which if it is not a limitation to storytelling, it is certainly a challenge to someone like me who has always written fiction.
Q:
 How did you find it collaborating on a book, after writing books and stories on your own for so long?
A:
 I feel fortunate in that regard. Ray was easy to work with. He provided me with everything that was available, from reports and records, to interviews with him and other investigators. Together we took all that information and chiseled out a complete manuscript, putting the facts together with the personal accounts of the people who were closest to Amy and Jason. We got along well and we both had the same goal, telling Amy’s and Jason’s story while making them the central characters, and not the killers. We wanted to give them an identity. Much of the general public only knew them from the mostly stark newspaper accounts, and it was important for us to talk with friends and family members in order to achieve this goal.
Q: Did you find it difficult researching such a chilling event, especially when talking with the families and friends of Amy and Jason?
A: It was daunting for me, for sure. I did not want to add any further pain, especially to the families, or open up old wounds, which certainly will never completely heal. Fortunately, they all had a great relationship with Ray, and trusted him. They carried that over to me, and that made it a lot easier for me. It was not easy for them either, of course, and the last thing I wanted to do was pressure them for information they may not have been willing to divulge. It took some time, but they eventually realized what we were trying to accomplish, and wanted the same thing. Had they not been so accommodating, this book probably would not have been written. Or, at least, not nearly as well, as far as insight into what Amy and Jason were really like.
Q: Is there another writing project you’re working on currently? A new book readers can look forward to?
A: I am currently looking for a publisher for Embattled. Actually, that manuscript is being represented by Langton’s International Agency. They have edited it and are shopping it around. They are considering having me develop one of the chapters in Embattled into a full length book. It involves a mob murder case that Urbano Prignano, Jr. investigated when he was a detective. I am also working on another true story which also took place in Providence in 2000. It involves two city police officers who tragically shot and killed a fellow officer, Cornell Young, Jr., who was off-duty and in plain clothes when he was mistaken for a suspect. Young was black, and the two officer who fired at him were white. The incident polarized the city, and racial tensions ran exceedingly high, especially when the officers were cleared of any wrong-doing, on criminal charges as well as of violating Young’s constitutional rights. A major wrongful-death civil lawsuit was eventually brought against the city of Providence, which featured Johnnie Cochran and other “dream team” lawyers representing the slain officer’s estate. I am writing the book with Michael Solitro, who was one of the officers involved in that tragic shooting.